The international landscape has changed drastically since 1945, but not the membership of the world’s most elite club. The same five nations hold the same five permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council despite the addition of 140 countries to the original UN rolls.
The General Assembly has long talked about Security Council reform, and now voices around the world are joining the call for change. Germany and Japan have long been considered the most likely pledges to join the fraternity, but now India, the world’s largest democracy, is looking like a top contender. However, Russia, China, France, Britain, and the US still wield the real muscle; the veto, and anyone looking to sit with the grown-ups needs their unanimous sanction.
Guests:
Sugata Bose, professor of South Asian history, Harvard University
Edward Luck, director of the Center on International Organization at Columbia University